After weeks of studying the brain and its functions, two Year 8 classes had the opportunity to partake in an exciting activity: dissecting lambs’ brains!
Facilitated by Mrs Krishna and Mrs Mistry, the students were divided into groups and given tools to assist with their experiment, including a scalpel and magnifying glass.
Their first task was to identify the main parts of the brain (the cerebellum, spinal cord, right lobe and left lobe), before cutting it open to observe the insides.
Though difficult at first due to the frozen state of the brain, many students were able to creatively come up with methods to make the cutting process easier – for example, using warm water to defrost.
While some of the brains were more successfully dissected than others, the students were all able to better understand its structure through the physical experience.
“It was impressive that the students were determined to find the parts of the brain, and there was a lot of learning going on,” says Mrs Mistry.
Mrs Krishna added, “It was good for them to learn through smelling, feeling and touching – hopefully they will remember this hands-on experiment!”
The classes had also previously conducted an egg dissection to investigate the anatomy of an egg, their experience proving useful in making the experiment run smoothly.
Overall, every student agreed the dissections were fun experiences, and found it interesting to see a real brain – easily the highlight of their week.
